Dark Sonic 2: Rise
by HTKWolfe777
Summary: Since the rise, and fall of Dark, Sonic's life has drastically changed. With foes coming out of the woodwork he must do what he can to hold them at bay. All the while his evil alter-ego fights to regain control. Will Sonic succumb, or will he Rise above even himself?
1. Chapter 1

**_Dark Sonic: Rise (Second book in the Dark Sonic Saga)_**

**_Chapter 1_**

Ever since Sonic obtained the powers of Chaos he hasn't quite been the same. He still relies on his speed for the most part, but now he realizes just how much Shadow took care of for him. With only one ultra-powerful hedgehog on Mobius now (Silver fans shut up) Sonic has been one busy hedgehog. Eggman is being quiet, sticking to being a top-ten stockholder in the world, but in his wake there have been lots of smaller threats using technology he sold back in his super-villain days. Kind of sad really…

At the moment Sonic runs through the open area of the Green Hill Zone, more out of nostalgia than anything. He remembers saving Flickies, and other creatures from Eggman's clutches at almost every platform in the area.

"Gee, never thought I'd miss Egg-butt so much," he muses out loud, and pauses to catch what little breath he lost. He shields his eyes from the sun, and watches Angel Island floating in the distance. He looks at his wrist where one of the four Inhibitor Rings he has to wear now rests. He thinks back to the first day he went to visit Shadow's memorial.

**(Flashback, two months ago)**

Sonic follows Knuckles across the grass to a small statue standing there. It's Shadow, standing with his arms crossed, and a fake Chaos Emerald in his hand, green just like the one he liked to carry with him so much. At the base is a bronze plague reading, "Shadow the Hedgehog, the Ultimate Hero, and Friend."

"Hard to believe he's gone," Knuckles says. "Out of all of us he was the _last_ I expected to kick the bucket. He was always such a survivor…"

Sonic smirks, and looks skyward, "I wouldn't feel too bad for him though, he's in god hands." Sonic chuckles as he thinks back to the apparitions of Shadow, and Maria Robotnik he'd seen some time ago. Knuckles looks puzzled, but just dismisses it after a second thought. Sonic nods, and sets the rose he'd brought on the plague. It has Black, and red petals since Tails genetically engineered it.

"We miss ya buddy," Sonic says, and smiles. "Say hi to Maria for me, okay?"

**(End Flashback)**

Sonic smiles at the memory, "Heh… Hope you like your retirement Shadow."

He starts running again, thinking of the newest group to show up since Eggman's retirement. They call themselves the Dark Egg Legion. He'd gone to Eggman himself, but a lie detector Tails made confirmed Eggman had nothing to do with these nimrods.

Their main leader, an Echidna named Lien-Da, is as cunning as she is ruthless. She's made a few grabs for the Master Emerald, but with the ironic help of Rouge, Knuckles has held them off long enough for Sonic to get there each time. In his opinion, the only girl even close to being as scary as an angry Amy is that Lien-Da chick.

Then a smell hits him, and he almost slips. In the grass he sees flecks of red, and follows them to a body of a small dead creature, too torn to shreds for him to recognize. He feels like throwing up, what, or who did this?

He looks further down the track, and spots more bodies like a breadcrumb trail. He starts at a slow trot so he doesn't slip again, and follows them down the straight narrow path. He doesn't remember such a straight path in Green Hill, but he continues to follow anyways.

He stops, and gags when he finds a huge pile of shredded bodies piled in the middle of the trail. He falls to his knees, and vomits, spitting the putrid taste from his mouth.

"Alright… this time the legion has gone too far," Sonic growls, and spots bloody footprints in the grass, moving around the pile. He trots after then, determined to find the offender.

He slows when he sees a figure up ahead. It's Tails, and he has blood on his shoes. It's can't be, Tails wouldn't…

Sonic pales at what he sees next… Another Sonic, leaning casually on a tree ahead of Tails; bloodstains on his gloves, shoes, and fur. Tails slowly approaches this new Sonic as a cruel grin spreads across his lips. The real Sonic makes a grab for Tails to stop him just as this imposter opens his eyes.

_Hello, do you want to play with me?_

Then Sonic wakes up.

He bolts upright in bed, his heart pounding like you would not believe. He feels his forehead, and it comes away wet with sweat.

"Heh, just a dream," he laughs to himself. "Careful man, you're losing it."

He goes to the sink, and fills it with cold water. He splashes some in his face, rubbing it down to wake himself up, and put the nightmare behind him. He looks up at his reflection with his trademark smile.

His reflection looks back with an evil sneer filled with sharp teeth. It's fur is covered with caked layers of dried blood, and so are his gloves. The eyes that stare back at Sonic are completely black with glowing red orbs focused intently on him.

Sonic jumps back in shock, slamming into the wall behind him. He blinks, and his reflection is back to normal, showing him one cobalt hedgehog ready to jump out of his fur.

"…Maybe I really _am_ losing it," he says with deep breaths. He balls his fists, and looks at the rings on his wrists, rubbing them so the smooth feel can ground him in reality once again. "I know what you're doing Dark, and it's not going to work. I am Sonic the Hedgehog, a hero, and so help me you'll never see another living soul ever again."

No response comes, but he can just imagine the mocking laughter…

**_Dear readers,_**

**_First let me say how honored I am to have so many of you enjoying my first story Dark Sonic: Unstoppable. It was such a huge hit that now I'm averaging about a hundred Views a day! Words cannot express my gratitude so instead I present you with the much desired sequel that a few of you have asked for. Enjoy, and please Review, it lets me know you care!_**

**_-HTKWolfe_**


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter 2_**

Tails answers the door when Amy knocks, and he lets her in. "Hey Amy, glad you could come."

Amy gives him a quick hug, "Hey Tails, you wanted to see me?"

Tails nods, and sits on the couch, "Well… you see… it's about Sonic."

Amy sits too, "What about him?"

Tails sighs, and rubs his eyes. "Ever since the… incident Sonic hasn't been sleeping right. He'll wake up screaming so loud I can hear it in my lab downstairs. If we had neighbors I bet they'd be complaining, or calling the cops." He looks up at her, "I don't think he's ever fully gotten over that."

Amy nods, and twiddles her thumbs, "So why call me?"

"I think Sonic needs people that really care about him right now, and I need your help finding ways to ground him in the present."

"Tails," Amy stands. "I don't think this is all in his head. We all saw Sonic absorb that _thing_ back into his body. Having all that evil in you…"

Tails chews his lip, "I know Amy, I know. But if we can get Sonic to believe otherwise then it might make things easier on him."

Amy considers this, and nods slowly, "Alright… so what should we do?"

Tails shrugs, "I've done everything I can think of, getting him out of the house with runs, having him race with Blaze, I even hacked into a few of Eggman's machines to fake attacks on the city."

"You did what?!"

"That's how desperate I am," Tails pleads. "Surely you can help think of something!"

"Well duh!" Amy crosses her arms, "Sonic's done nothing but run, and fight ever since Shadow died. He needs to slow down, relax a little like he used to."

Tails sighs, "If only it were that easy."

Amy smiles, "Maybe it is…"

…

"Tails, have you seen my shoes?"

"Nope!" Tails doesn't look up from his newspaper, and coffee as Sonic searches the house for his sneakers. Amy gives Tails a wink from the stove, and continues making breakfast.

Sonic growls in frustration, and tosses a cushion across the room, "This isn't funny guys!"

"Way to channel Shadow," Amy quips as she puts plates of toast, eggs, and bacon on the table. Sonic gives her a look that says he is not amused.

"C'mon guys, seriously! What if there's an attack?"

"Let someone else handle it," Amy says as she pulls him into a chair. "It'll be on the news or something, and if an attack does happen then you can show up all heroically at the last second if Knuckles or someone else can't handle it."

"Without my shoes?" Sonic gives her a flat look.

"Oh just eat you big baby," Amy says in frustration as she takes her own seat. Sonic obliges, but there's a tense silence in the air. Tails eventually tries to break it.

"Um… I heard Twinkle Park is doing a Free Day, the first fifty people there don't have to pay their way in."

Amy perks up, "Sounds like fun!"

"I can't go anywhere without my shoes."

Tails smiles, "We can get you some sandals until you find them."

They jump as Sonic bangs a fist on the table, making everything on it rattle. "Will you two quit screwing around, and just give me back my damn shoes?!"

Amy looks shocked he would talk to them like that. Tails puts up a hand, "Sonic, just calm down. I know life's been pretty hard on you recently, that's why we think you need a break."

Sonic thinks, and then unclenches his fist. "Sorry guys… I guess I just haven't been sleeping well or something."

Amy puts her fork down, "You used to have fun Sonic, to you saving people was fun, and you always found time just to wind down. Now it's just all work for you."

Sonic rubs his head while staring into his food. "I know Amy, and that was the problem. I hardly ever took Eggman seriously, and Shadow died because of it. I can't let that happen again."

Amy rubs his arm, "So you don't mix work, and play from now on, just still find some time to unwind or you really will snap."

Sonic looks between them, and a smile comes to his lips. "Alright guys, let's do it. Just give me my shoes, okay? I swear I won't run off unless it's a life-or-death emergency."

Amy cheers, "YAY!"

…

"This isn't what I had in mind," Sonic mutters as they head for the amusement park entrance. Since it's Halloween night they're in costume. Sonic is dressed as Batman while Tails rocks a Robin costume (the modern versions), and Amy's dressed as Catwoman… the version of that one Overlander… _something _Berry. Whatever, back to the story!

Amy giggles, "Oh come on, it's not that bad."

Sonic looks himself over in a shop window. "…No, I guess not."

Tails chuckles, and they get in the elevator for the main entrance. Amy sighs, "I remember the last time we were here."

"Yeah, with one of Eggman's clunkers trying to snatch a bird from you," Sonic laughs.

Amy smirks, and leans into him, "Want me to call him, see if he can send one for old times' sake?"

"No thank you," Sonic says sincerely.

Amy leans into him, "So…"

"Again, no thanks." Sonic puts a hand into her face, and holds her at arm's length as she tries to get him. Tails laughs, and snaps a picture of the scene.

Amy growls playfully, "I have claws, don't make me use them!"

"Oh, we're here!" Sonic steps out of Amy's way as she tries to glomp him, and walks into the amusement park with Tails. Amy trots to catch up, pouting while wondering if she really can use the whip on her hip like in the movies.

Sonic smiles as he looks around. Already he can feel weight lifting off his shoulders. The lights, the laughter, the smell of fresh Franks on the air… It's like a huge party!

Tails looks at a map, "Where to first Batman?"

Sonic looks around, and eyes the bumper cars, "To the Batmobiles!"

Amy rolls her eyes as she follows them over to the ride. Sonic, and Tails hop in a two-person bumper cart while Amy hops in a pink single one. The whistle blows, and the drivers take off.

Sonic swerves to avoid Amy who ends up crashing into another driver. Tails, and Sonic laugh as they get blindsided by another driver, and then spend the rest of their time in the ride trying to get the pest while avoiding Amy.

It really _is _like old times.

Once the ride is over Sonic, and Tails pointedly ignore Amy as she eyes the Tunnel of Love ride. Instead they head for the food court. Sonic gets a (real no-brainer here) chilidog while Tails enjoys some Nachos, and Amy gets a chicken salad.

It's a quiet meal, something Sonic hasn't taken time to enjoy in a long time. He nods to himself with a smile, and says, "I really needed this, never had any idea just how much though until now."

"You're welcome," Amy says cheekily, and Sonic chuckles. After they've finished they decide to check out the concerts so their food can settle. However none of the bands playing really interest them, and the lines for the rides are miles long now.

"Let's call it a day," Tails suggests.

Amy yawns an agreement, and Sonic reluctantly agrees too.

…

_Fire… burning… The Green Hill Zone is burning!_

_Sonic doesn't know what to do as the flames swirl in a raging inferno. One clear path lies ahead of him so he bolts for it. He has to get out of here, if he doesn't something terrible will happen…_

_Tails!_

_Sonic is so relieved to see his best buddy unharmed, and runs right up to him. As he gets closer though he can see the fear in Tails's eyes, and wordlessly he points to the path ahead of them before taking off running. Sonic eyes a burn on his best friend's tail, and reaches out to scoop him up so they can get out of there!_

_His hands pass right through him, like he were made of air._

_Then comes the laughter, and Tails' eyes fly wide as a figure emerges from the flames._

_It's Sonic, caked in blood with the most evil eyes imaginable, and a sneer. Sonic shouts for Tails to run, but no sound comes out._

_Tails is sweating bullets as he runs, but Sonic knows enough about high-speed running to know that the other Sonic is toying with Tails'. He's gradually catching up, letting Tails hold on to the hope that he might be able to escape somehow. The horrible phantom grabs Tails' shoulder…_

_Then it vanishes._

_Amidst the flames surrounding them both Tails drops to his knees, and weeps. Sonic doesn't understand. The evil Sonic is gone somehow, he can't hurt Tails for some-_

_The thought had barely crossed his mind when the phantom returns, looming over Tails. The twin-tailed fox lets loose a shrill cry of terror, and pain as the phantom grabs him, and starts ripping him open._

_Sonic watches in horror, that terrible scream ringing in his ears, as his friend is strewn across the burning plains._

**_You're too slow…_**

Sonic awakes as violently from the dream as the dream had been violent. He's ready for a fight, ready to destroy that phantom, and save his friend!

And then reality catches up with him… it was just a dream. Sonic is torn between relief, and greif. It had been so real…

Sonic hugs his knees to his chest, and weeps.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Dear Readers,**_

**_Firstly I would like to thank you for your continuing support. It's what keeps the love for writing alive in my chest. Secondly let me apologize for the long delay, I have been trying to find work, and alas it is proving… Difficult. Therefore all my efforts are done on my phone, and right now it seems to be determined to vex me at every given opportunity. -.-"_**

**_To those of you who have recognized the reference, yes I am using a lots of material from the fan made game Sonic . EXE. I hope this did not discourage any of you as I have a perfectly logical explanation. In my mind, as some of you may have noticed in the last book, EXE is basically Dark Sonic without the power of seven corrupted Chaos Emeralds. As the author I adopted the original story from would have put it, the black Dark Sonic we see with upturned quills is Dark Super Sonic. I apologize again for any confusion._**

**_Please Review your feedback, and thank you for taking an interest in this story thus far._**

**_Sincerely,_**

**_HTKWolfe_**

The recurring nightmares are going to drive him crazy… Sonic the hedgehog crawls out of bed, and walks into his bathroom, expecting to see the demon in the mirror once more. Thankfully all he can see is his own reflection looking back at him, but that still would be enough to scare anyone. His eyes are bloodshot, and boast dark rings underneath them. All in all it is not the visage of a hero a child should tell their mother they want to be when they grow up. It doesn't help that his fitful sleep has left his quills standing up at odd angles.

He steps into the shower, and washes the sweat off of his body from the nightmare last night. A little washing also helps put his quills back in the right order, but sadly they cannot do anything for those horrible eyes of his. Getting out, and grabbing his towel to dry off with he can't help staring at his horrible reflection again, if only to convince himself that there is no demon waiting to spring at him.

A delicious scent tickles his nose: sausage on a toasted wheat bun with chili, and bacon bits. His favorite breakfast of all time.

He bolts downstairs with a wide smile, and Tails turns to face him...

"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Sonic dives like a baseball player to catch the plate with his precious chili-sausage as Tails scrambles on top of the refrigerator to stare down at him in horror. Sonic gives him a flat look as he puts the plate on the countertop. "Not cool little bro..."

Tails blinks, "Sonic? Oh thank Chaos, I thought I was having a nightmare!"

"Yeah, there's a lot of that going around," Sonic mutters.

"What?"

"Nothing! So how did you sleep?"

Tails smiles as as he puts he boxes of cereal he had knocked over. "Better than you obviously, though not by much. I had this really weird nightmare of you chasing me in Green Hill while everything was burning."

The glass Sonic had been planning to use for milk slips from his grip, and shatters on the floor. Tails sighs, and gets the broom, mistaking Sonic's horror-induced spasm of the hand for fatigue, "I liked that glass too..."

As Tails cleans up Sonic mutters, "Dried blood caked on, and pure black eyes except for those burning orbs staring at you..."

Tails slows to a stop, and slowly looks up at Sonic, "What... Did you say...?"

Sonic swallows hard, "Tails... I had that exact same dream last night. I was floating around like a ghost or something while some sick version of me chased you. You ran, and ran-"

"But it just steadily kept getting faster," Tails finishes.

Sonic nods, "And... I saw it kill you little bro... Just rip you apart..."

Tails shudders, he had been repressing that part. "So we had the exact same nightmare? Either we're both experiencing mass hysteria, or somthing is... Wrong."

"Yeah I'm gonna bet on that second one," Sonic says, subconsciously rubbing his Inhibitor Ring. "I mean, whenever somthing is wrong in our lives when is it ever just a coincidence?"

Tails nods, "I know what you mean... But what do we do? We can't solve a problem if we don't know what the problem is."

Sonic rubs his head, "I'm worried it may be Dark again, or some side effect of getting Shadow's powers." Tails nods again, and reaches into his tails for sample vials.

"Luckily your experience from that day isn't unique. Maybe Knuckles knows something. Why don't you go pay him a visit later while I run some tests?"

Sonic nods, taking the vial, "What do I do with this?"

"Got a few quills you can spare?"

...

Knuckles is laying on his back on the stairs to the Master Emerald shrine, snoozing in the midday heat.

"That can't be good for your back..."

"Hm?" Knuckles opens his eyes, and comes face to face with... A MONSTER!

Sonic puts up his hands, "Chill dude, it's just me!"

Knuckles blinks a few times, and then laughs. "Wow Sonic, look who woke up in the Ugly Tree this morning, and hit every branch when he fell out!"

"Oh you finally found a mirror?" Sonic puts his hands on his hips. Knuckles scowls, and then gets to his feet. Sonic waves a hand, "Chill out man, I'm not here to start a fight. I need your help with something."

Knuckles rolls his eyes, "What is it?"

Sonic sits down, and explains his nightmares, his fear of Dark returning, even of Tails sharing his nightmare. Knuckles listens patiently, nodding to himself in thought as he strokes his chin. "...Well Sonic I'm not sure what to say, the scrolls I found don't really say much about the ascended heroes after they've been blessed... But I'll see what I can do."

Sonic smiles, "Thanks buddy, I owe ya one!"

Knuckles shakes his head, "No Sonic, the world owes you, and right now we're not even _close _to being even."

...

_Knuckles is running, from what Sonic has a good idea. The scenery looks like the old chemical plant that sonic ran through around the time he first met Eggman. Only now there are no twisting or turning pipes, there is just one long catwalk of metal there in front of him. Sonic is expecting his metal counterpart to arrive behind them at any moment, or at least that's what he hopes._

_Suddenly what little light there is in the room goes out, and then after a few seconds… It comes back on. Sonic wishes that it hadn't._

_He can feel those eyes on the both of them in this darkness... The lights waver again, and it drops a few degrees in temperature. Sonic can feel the monsters getting closer… Ever so closer… And it wants to play._

_The lights flash again, this time they take longer to come on. When they do sonic can see that his buddy is far along the cat walk away from him. On top of that the metal on the ground is covered with blood, as are Knuckles's namesakes. Had there been a fight? Knuckles doesn't look too injured..._

_Thats when HE appears with that shriek of his. Knuckles backpedals, or at least he tries to, but it's like some invisible force is drawing him towards the demon. Knuckles growls, tapping into his warrior instincts he uses the powers being used against him to propel himself at the monster, and then he bashes it across the face._

_Then the monster vanishes... Does Sonic dare hope?_

_Any hopes he may have been fostering are soon proven to be in vain. The monster appears again on the other side of the kids, and draws him towards himself again. Sonic has just enough time to realize that the beast is unharmed before The coolest buries his fist in the monstrosity's chest._

_Sonic opens his mouth to call to his long time friend, and warn him that it's pointless. But no sound comes out, his words are frozen in his throat. He tries to run to Knuckles to help him in someway, but his legs won't move… He can't run._

_Time and time again he watches as he echidna Warrior charges the beast, head it flicks some kind of wound before it vanishes only to reappear uninjured. Eventually his strength fails him, and the guardian drops to his knees. Sonic swears he can see tears falling down his friends face._

_And that's when the demon strikes, ripping Knuckles's chest open, and tearing out his hearts right in front of Sonic._

_"SO MANY SOULS TO PLAY WITH SO LITTLE TIME… WOULDN'T YOU AGREE?"_


End file.
